Houston Rockets vs. Portland Trail Blazers game preview

After dropping a winnable game in Oklahoma City, the Rockets return home to take on another team that’s probably pissed and ready to go.

The Blazers dropped a home game to the Bulls by 25 points. It was an embarrassment for a team that believes it is a top 4 West team (and they might be). The point isn’t that Portland may or may not be great, but that they will be peeved and angry after losing a game at home that on paper they should have won.

These teams have a history, but other than Harden and Beverley no one is left from that squad that lost to the Blazers in the first round. Also, none of the players are around from the 1994 first round series where the Rockets won 3-1 and then won an NBA title. But I digress.

Portland spent a ton of money in the offseason and brought in Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli to help bolster their already strong lineup. Portland now sits at 7-5 and in the mix with Houston and others in the group that will likely finish between the 4 and 9 seeds in the West.

It’s been a few years now, but here’s your annual reminder: Blazers fans are mostly pretty cool. TDS has always been on good terms with Blazer’s Edge and Pinwheel Empire. I think enough time has passed that nothing will come of the matchup. But just know that anything vile won’t be tolerated. And if a Blazers fan tries to troll and post “0.9 lolol” they’re getting banned. Cool?

Tip-off is at 7pm CT. It’s always annoying playing on the West Coast because their games start so late, so enjoy matchups with them when they are in Houston if you can.